Bob Baffert | Horse Racing Free Tips

Judge Says Baffert Reply is Admissible

The federal judge presiding over the Bob Baffert versus the New York Racing Association ban case ruled Thursday that Baffert's affidavit, filed Wednesday as part of a 434-page “reply memorandum of law in further support of motion for preliminary injunction” of NYRA's ban, would not be stricken or disregarded, as NYRA had requested.

NYRA's attorney, Henry Greenberg, argued that the reply included new information that the NYRA did not have time to investigate and that the entire filing or the affidavit should be stricken or disregarded.

NYRA informed Baffert on May 17 after Medina Spirit's Derby positive for Betamethasone became public that he was temporarily not welcome to stable or race at Aqueduct, Belmont or Saratoga.

On June 14, Baffert filed a civil complaint against NYRA, alleging that the association's ban violates his Fourteenth Amendment constitutional right to due process.

On June 30, NYRA filed a 236-page memorandum in opposition to granting Baffert an injunction. Baffert's attorneys filed their 434-page reply on Wednesday.

On a conference call at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Judge Carol Bagley Amon ruled that all of the arguments and exhibits in Baffert's July 7 filing were admissible.

On the call, Greenberg told the judge that the filing of the paper was a “classic sandbag” on the part of Baffert's attorneys.

“The moment we saw the plaintiff's papers, especially the plaintiff's affidavit, we were shocked and disturbed,” Greenberg told the judge. “Because frankly, the plaintiff's submission was the most abusive use of a reply submission that I have ever seen.”

Greenberg argued that many of the claims made in the filing were not in reply to NYRA's response, nor were they substantiated. As an example, he cited the well-documented loss by Baffert of several top WinStar horses.

The Baffert filing details how WinStar had moved its horses to other trainers as a result of the NYRA ban.

“As for harms that have already occurred as a result of NYRA's ban, one of Baffert's major clients, WinStar Farm (“WinStar”) has moved all of its horses to other trainers. This included significant thoroughbreds LIFE IS GOOD (this year's Kentucky Derby favorite before he suffered a minor injury) and COUNTRY GRAMMER (Grade I winner of the Hollywood Cup and an early favorite for this year's Breeders' Cup Classic). This loss is substantial to Baffert, not only be because of the quality of the horses he lost, but because he has successfully trained many horses owned by WinStar, including recent Triple Crown winner JUSTIFY. WinStar's CEO, Elliott Walden, has publicly stated that he pulled these horse from Baffert partially due to NYRA's suspension because Baffert's current ability to enter horses in prestigious races is `limited.'”

The filing includes a copy of several stories from industry press detailing the incident and quoting Walden.

But Greenberg argued, “First of all, we have no idea if that's true or not. Second of all, WinStar is a corporation, not a person. Third of all, it's hearsay. Fourth of all, it's conclusive.”

“Who said these things?” Greenberg asked.

But Baffert's attorney Craig Robertson pointed out that Walden was indeed named in the filing, but was quoted in press clippings that were also provided. The TDN covered the story on June 24.

In the story, it quotes a text to the media from Walden which says, “The plan is to ship to Todd Pletcher in the coming weeks with a possibility of running in New York later this year. With the ban on Bob in Kentucky and New York right now, our opportunities are limited. We will continue to evaluate the situation with Bob and appreciate everything he has done with Life is Good.”

“They said Mr. Baffert has not given any specifics about horses who have been removed from his care, and that that was an important component,” Robertson said. “And so, in response to that, we drafted our reply and we addressed those specific points. They allege that we hadn't met our burden in response, which is exactly what we're allowed to do. We address the importance of New York racing to Mr. Baffert, and we address the specifics that they were claiming that were missing.”

Judge Amon said that while she hadn't expected to rule on any motions in the conference call, she was now being called upon to do so.

“There has been a motion to strike the affidavit of Mr. Baffert. Based on what I have heard today in this conference, I'm going to deny the motion to strike the affidavit,” she said.

She also recommended that Baffert be in court Monday in case he were called upon to testify to settle any disputes. She asked Robertson if Baffert were asked to testify that it was Walden who had talked to Baffert, would he be able to say that Walden had told him that?

“Yes, your honor,” said Robertson.

Robertson said that he would also provide the judge with other owners' names for whom Baffert had lost horses due to the NYRA ban by noon tomorrow.

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Baffert Attorneys: ‘It Does Not Serve The Integrity Of Horse Racing To Suspend First And Ask Questions Later’

Just five days before a scheduled hearing, attorneys for embattled trainer Bob Baffert filed a 434-page memorandum supporting their attempt to convince the court to overturn the New York Racing Association's ban on Baffert. According to the Thoroughbred Daily News, Baffert's attorneys allege that NYRA has “vindictively” targeted the trainer utilizing “hypocrisy” and “backdoor” tactics. The filing also zeroes in on two legal arguments: that the ban violates the trainer's right to due process, and that NYRA has no authority to issue a ban.

“Nowhere in NYRA's Response is there any contention that Baffert has violated any New York statute or racing rule,” the memo states. “In fact, the opposite is true. Over the course of his 46-year training career, including more than 30 years of racing in New York, Baffert has never even been accused of violating a New York rule and he has never faced discipline from either NYRA or the New York State Gaming Commission [NYSGC].

“Despite his distinguished New York racing career, without even a hint of wrongdoing, NYRA believes it has free rein to unilaterally void his constitutionally protected property rights and ban him from all activity in New York without notice and for an indefinite period of time based solely on unproven allegations of a minor infraction (an overage of an allowable medication) in another jurisdiction.”

Baffert filed suit against NYRA on June 14, nearly a month after the racing association notified the Hall of Fame trainer that he was temporarily banned from racing or stabling at NYRA tracks while the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission conducts its investigation into the post-race drug positive for Baffert-trained Medina Spirit, who crossed the finish line first in the May 1 Kentucky Derby. Baffert is seeking a temporary and permanent injunction against the ban.

As defendant in the case, NYRA filed a memorandum of law on June 30 in opposition to Baffert's motion for preliminary injunction. The Jockey Club filed a brief on that same date as amicus curiae, or friend of the court, claiming that its role as keeper of the Stud Book gives it a “unique interest in ensuring that when Thoroughbreds enter the breeding shed (where they determine the future of the breed through progeny), they do so with records uninfluenced by the effects of medication.”

Both those court filings struck the same note, countering Baffert's argument that he will suffer irreparable harm as a result of his ban from Belmont Park and the upcoming high-profile meeting at Saratoga.

In response, the July 7 memo from Baffert's attorneys argues: “There is no compensating for the missed opportunity to participate in prestigious races that define the success of a trainer's career and garner goodwill with clients. NYRA's argument that Baffert cannot prove irreparable harm because he can still race in other states is missing the mark. First, there is no meet more prestigious than Saratoga and the gravitas and economic benefit that come from New York racing cannot be overstated. (…) Baffert's runners in New York win almost three times the amount that they do outside New York. This demonstrates the importance of NYRA racing to Baffert despite the fact that he races in other jurisdictions.”

NYRA's June 30 memo contends that the decision to ban Baffert “was based on probable cause that plaintiff's actions warranted suspension and was necessary to protect the safety of the racehorses and their riders, and required to ensure the integrity of the sport.”

Baffert's attorneys insist that NYRA acting on behalf of the sport's integrity is a “false narrative.”

“The fact NYRA routinely allows onto its tracks trainers who have actually been found to have broken New York's rules of racing completely shatters that false narrative,” their July 7 memo states. “NYRA smears Baffert with allegations about other positive tests, without providing the critical context of those, including that they involved minor overages of permitted substances, none of which merited a suspension and some of which, Baffert was, for all practical purposes, vindicated. … It does not serve the 'integrity' of horse racing to suspend first and ask questions later.”

A hearing on the motion for injunctive relief is scheduled for July 12.

Read more at the Thoroughbred Daily News.

Additional stories about Baffert's Kentucky Derby positive and ensuing legal battles, listed in order from most recent to the original story:

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Baffert Alleges ‘Hypocrisy’ & ‘Backdoor Tactics’ Behind NYRA Ban

Alleging “hypocrisy” and “backdoor” tactics on the part of defendant New York Racing Association (NYRA) to “vindictively target” Bob Baffert, attorneys for the seven-time GI Kentucky Derby winning trainer supplied a federal judge with a 434-page “memo” Wednesday in support of trying to get the court to overturn a NYRA-imposed ban on Baffert.

NYRA's exclusion of Baffert from Saratoga Race Course, Belmont Park and Aqueduct Racetrack was mandated May 17 by the association because of the Hall of Fame trainer's repeated equine medication violations in other jurisdictions.

The voluminous electronic file of the plaintiff's arguments and exhibits was uploaded to United States District Court (Eastern District of New York) July 7, just five days before the case is scheduled to come before the judge next Monday morning.

According to queries from lawyers listed in the case file, attorneys still didn't know late in the day Wednesday if the judge expected them to arrange for live witnesses to testify at Monday's hearing, or if the court proceedings would be conducted solely via attorney arguments (which is what counsel for both parties wrote that they preferred).

“Nowhere in NYRA's Response is there any contention that Baffert has violated any New York statute or racing rule,” the trainer's attorneys wrote in the filing. “In fact, the opposite is true. Over the course of his 46-year training career, including more than 30 years of racing in New York, Baffert has never even been accused of violating a New York rule and he has never faced discipline from either NYRA or the New York State Gaming Commission [NYSGC].

Wednesday's memo from the plaintiff caps a week-long flurry of back-and-forth legal filings in the case, which was initiated June 14 when Baffert filed a civil complaint against NYRA, alleging that the banishment violates his Fourteenth Amendment constitutional right to due process.

NYRA told the court this week that it opposes Baffert getting any type of injunction that would overrule its ban, which the association imposed in the wake of Baffert's shifting explanations after Medina Spirit (Protonico) tested positive for betamethasone after winning the May 1 Kentucky Derby.

That finding was the fifth drug positive in a Baffert trainee over the last year and his third in a Grade I stakes during that time. Medina Spirit's positive has not yet been adjudicated by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, but the gaming corporation Churchill Downs, Inc., has already barred Baffert for a two-year period from its five Thoroughbred tracks.

One new bone of contention that emerged in the July 7 filing is that Baffert's legal team isn't pleased with NYRA's repeated categorization that its ban on Baffert is “temporary” (NYRA did initially tell Baffert via letter that it would reconsider his exclusion once Kentucky based on information revealed during the course of the investigation.)

“One thing is clear: there is nothing 'temporary' about NYRA's suspension,” Baffert's filing stated. “It is now running on 51 days with no end in sight, and with no mention of a hearing through which the suspension would potentially be lifted. And if NYRA's goal was to keep Medina Spirit out of the [GI] Belmont [S.], that mission was accomplished.

“The Belmont was run more than a month ago and NYRA offers no reason for why the 'temporary' suspension should continue indefinitely–other than the debunked notion that it is acting to protect the 'interest of horse racing.' Enough is enough.

“This hypocrisy clearly demonstrates that NYRA's claim it must act against Baffert to protect the 'interest of racing' is totally false–NYRA's own prior actions prove that affording due process to trainers is perfectly consistent with NYRA's mission. It is clear that NYRA's stated need to exclude Baffert immediately 'in the interest of racing' is little more than a pretext to vindictively target him.”

The defendant's attorneys contended last week in an opposing memo that “Given Plaintiff's history of drug-related violations, Medina Spirit's positive test, Plaintiff's contradictory statements, Plaintiff's [then-temporary] suspension from Churchill Downs, and the fact that the Belmont was fast approaching, NYRA took the only sensible action under the circumstances–it temporarily suspended Plaintiff from entering and stabling horses at its Racetracks.”

In response, the plaintiff's filing on July 7 tried to boil down the legal merits of the case as such: “First, Baffert was not afforded any due process before he was summarily suspended by NYRA. He was given no notice of any charges against him and no opportunity to be heard. Instead, he received a letter stating that he was immediately suspended and would not be permitted to race any horses in New York. That letter was issued over 50 days ago and, to date, Baffert has not been afforded a due process hearing. Courts have continually rejected NYRA's efforts to either deny or limit a licensee's right of access to racetracks without pre-deprivation due process of law.”

“Second, NYRA does not have the authority to suspend Baffert trainer's license under New York law. That authority rests exclusively with the NYSGC. As long as Baffert has a valid trainer's license with the Gaming Commission–which he does–NYRA cannot prohibit him from exercising that license at New York's state-owned racetracks. If it believes Baffert has

engaged in conduct that warrants the suspension of his license, it needs to take that matter up with the [NYSGC, which has] been noticeably silent throughout this process because, unlike NYRA, it is following New York racing law and waiting for the administrative process related to Medina Spirit that is currently ongoing in Kentucky to play out before taking any action.

“Neither may NYRA claim under these circumstances that it has some common-law right of exclusion that empowers it to prohibit Baffert from exercising his constitutionally protected right to use his trainer's license. NYRA's suspension of Baffert is 'tantamount' to revoking his license issued by the NYSGC, and NYRA may not do through the backdoor what it is statutorily prohibited from doing through the front,” the filing stated.

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Judge Tells NYRA No on Request for Pre-Motion Hearing

The federal judge in charge of the Bob Baffert vs. the New York Racing Association (NYRA) case told lawyers for NYRA that she would not schedule a last-minute conference the defendant's counsel had requested to discuss a planned “motion to dismiss” filing.

Instead, in a swift and terse reply written shortly after NYRA's July 6 filing, Judge Carol Bagley Amon entered an order in United States District Court (Eastern District of New York) that stated, “Defendant has filed a request for a pre-motion conference. The request shall be taken up at the hearing scheduled for July 12.”

That date next Monday morning is the one the judge had already set last month to hear the civil complaint against the racing association by the barred Hall-of-Fame trainer, who seeks to overturn a temporary ban NYRA initiated against him.

As of 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, NYRA had not yet filed any formal motion to dismiss. On July 6 though, NYRA's attorneys wrote a letter to the court indicating that such a filing was in the pipeline.

On May 17, NYRA informed Baffert that he was temporarily not welcome to stable or race at the association's three tracks (Saratoga Race Course, Belmont Park and Aqueduct Racetrack) because of his highly publicized string of recent equine drug positives.

That ban, NYRA said at the time, would be re-evaluated based on information revealed during the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission investigation into Medina Spirit (Protonico)'s positive betamethasone tests that came back after the colt won the GI Kentucky Derby. In the 12 months prior to Medina Spirit's positive, four other Baffert trainees also tested positive for banned substances, two of them in Grade I stakes.

The gaming corporation Churchill Downs, Inc., has already barred Baffert for a two-year period from its five Thoroughbred tracks.

On June 14, Baffert filed a civil complaint against NYRA, alleging that the association's ban violates his Fourteenth Amendment constitutional right to due process.

On June 30, NYRA filed a 236-page memorandum in opposition to granting Baffert an injunction that would get him back on the track in New York.

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